British commander's interpreter offered himself to Iran as secret agent, jury told

Coporal Daniel James with General David Richards, the British commander of international forces in Afghanistan, for whom he worked as an interpreter. Photograph: Rodrigo Abd/AFP/Getty Images
Rodrigo Abd/AFP

An army interpreter for the British military commander in Afghanistan offered his services as an agent for Iran after becoming aggrieved and embittered about his treatment in the forces, an Old Bailey jury heard yesterday.

Tehran-born Daniel James, a corporal in the Territorial Army, was "in a unique position to overhear or glean a good deal of operational or strategic information" during his service alongside General David Richards, the British commander of international forces in Afghanistan in 2006, the jury was told. His value as a hostile intelligence agent "cannot be underestimated" in the view of the general he served.

James, a Farsi speaker, is alleged to have developed a clandestine relationship with Colonel Mohammad Hossein Heydari, military assistant at Iran's embassy in Kabul, providing him with information intended to be useful to an enemy. He pleaded not guilty to two charges under the 1911 Officials Secrets Act and to willful misconduct of public office, namely acting in a way inconsistent with his duty as a soldier.

Mark Dennis QC, prosecuting, told the jury: "The concern in this case is not so much the actual damage done by the known disclosure of information, but in the potential damage that could have occurred if the defendant's activities had not been curtailed by his early detection and arrest."

He added that James's apparent deviation from previous good service did not appear to be born out of any political or ideological motive.

At first James, 45, was found to be friendly, helpful, and good company. He set up salsa dancing classes and gave Spanish lessons. James was described as a very flamboyant person, outgoing, extrovert but also "as something of an oddball in many ways", Dennis told the jury, describing him as "something of a Water Mitty" character.

James appeared over-deferential to senior ranks, somewhat obsequious at times. To many, he appeared over-confident, even arrogant and pushy, revelling in his position close to Richards. "He liked to be the centre of attention and many felt that he had an exaggerated sense of his self-importance," the QC continued.

James's loyalty to Britain wavered and turned to Iran, the jury was told. "He turned his back on those with whom he was serving in Afghanistan and sought to become an agent of a foreign power," Dennis said. James had become "aggrieved and somewhat bitter at his lack of promotion". He began complaining that he should have been promoted to the rank of sergeant, "suggesting that his lack of preferment was rooted in racism".

After he was arrested by the police in December 2006 at RAF Brize Norton while waiting to return to Kabul after leave in Britain, he claimed that while training Afghan officers he had been treated "like a foreigner", the jury was told. Dennis said that when he was asked what Nato was doing in Afghanistan, James replied: "I don't give a fuck."

Two documents marked "Nato confidential" were found on a USB device in his possession. They were sit reps - situation reports - that included notes on operations, the number of Nato patrols, figures relating to insurgents and people detained by Nato forces.

The reports are provided only to those who "need to know". There was "no legitimate way in which the defendant could, or should, have come into possession of such items," Dennis said.

It was not known whether any of these documents were passed on to Heydari, he said. He added: "However, the value of these documents to anyone trying to sell himself as an agent to a foreign power, or to continue promoting himself as such, trying to show how close he was to sensitive information, is all too clear."

In James's room at his base in Kabul, police found a computer disc containing seven photographs of the "highly sensitive" Predator unmanned spy plane - apparently taken unofficially in a restricted area of Kandahar air base, Dennis added.

On November 2 2006, while he was on leave in the UK, James set up a new email account under a false name. A message sent in coded form to Heydari included a reference to a military camp being set up "in the north Iraq/Iraq border ... it is possible it is close to a city called al-Amarah". James concluded: "Any other work that you may have, I am at your service," signing the message "Esmail, the interpreter".

The jury was shown the contents of a number of emails and telephone calls between James and Heydari. They included a coded communication in which James warned: "If one day I write to you and say weather is very cold, I mean time does not allow me to be in contact with you at those times, til such time that it is safe".

James, born Esmail Mohammed Gamasai, nicknamed Essi, came to the UK in his early teens and settled in Brighton, Dennis told the jury. He became a British citizen in 1986, retaining his Iranian passport as a dual national.

In 1997 he changed his name by deed poll and had a number of jobs in Brighton, including work as a croupier at casinos, a security official at nightclubs, and a dance instructor. He volunteered to join the Princess of Wales Royal Regiment TA in 1987 and was called up for a tour of duty in Afghanistan in March 2006. There, his knowledge of languages, particularly Dari (Eastern Persian), led him to be appointed an interpreter.

Mr Justice Roderick Evans told jurors that parts of the trial would be heard in secret and that they would have access to documents marked "Nato Confidential", which they would have to treat confidentially.